The 2015 Kharkiv bombing occurred on 22 February 2015, when a bomb hit a Ukrainian national unity rally in the Ukrainian city of
Kharkiv
Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.Kharkiv Oblast
Kharkiv Oblast ( uk, Харківська́ о́бласть, translit=Kharkivska oblast), also referred to as Kharkivshchyna ( uk, Ха́рківщина), is an oblast (province) of eastern Ukraine. The oblast borders Russia to the north, Luhan ...
. The blast killed at least three people and injured another 10, including a boy age 15 and a policeman. On 25 February the death toll rose to four. It was one of many bombings in the cities of the
Kharkiv oblast
Kharkiv Oblast ( uk, Харківська́ о́бласть, translit=Kharkivska oblast), also referred to as Kharkivshchyna ( uk, Ха́рківщина), is an oblast (province) of eastern Ukraine. The oblast borders Russia to the north, Luhan ...
and
Odessa oblast
Odesa Oblast ( uk, Оде́ська о́бласть, translit=Odeska oblast), also referred to as Odeshchyna ( uk, Оде́щина) is an oblast (province) of southwestern Ukraine, located along the northern coast of the Black Sea. Its administ ...
.
Security forces arrested four people after the attack. More attacks happened in the city afterwards.
Bloomberg reported that the deadly attack in the government-controlled city assisted the decline of the
hryvnia
The or ( ; uk, гривня , : ''hrn''; sign: ₴; code: UAH) has been the national currency of Ukraine since 2 September 1996. The hryvnia is divided into 100 . It is named after a measure of weight used in medieval Kievan Rus'.
Name Etym ...
, Ukraine's
national currency
Fiat money (from la, fiat, "let it be done") is a type of currency that is not backed by any commodity such as gold or silver. It is typically designated by the issuing government to be legal tender. Throughout history, fiat money was sometime ...
.
On 28 December 2019 suspects Viktor Tetyutsk, Serhiy Bashlykov and Volodymyr Dvornikov were sentenced to life imprisonment. They were released (during a major prison exchange) and handed over to representatives of the Russian-controlled Donetsk People's Republic and
Luhansk People's Republic
The Luhansk or Lugansk People's Republic (russian: Луга́нская Наро́дная Респу́блика, Luganskaya Narodnaya Respublika, ; abbreviated as LPR or LNR, rus, ЛНР) is a disputed entity created by Russian-backed ...
on 29 December 2019.
The course of events
On February 22, 2015, an action was planned in Kharkiv. The announcement on the Euromaidan Kharkiv website stated the following:
"A year ago, tens of thousands of people came out in Kharkiv to thwart Bandyukovich's plans to split Ukraine. This year, Putler is threatening us with war in
Kharkiv
Kharkiv ( uk, wikt:Харків, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest List of cities in Ukraine, city and List of hromadas of Ukraine, municipality in Ukraine.Freedom Square, we will demonstrate once again - we are against separatism and
arbitrariness
Arbitrariness is the quality of being "determined by chance, whim, or impulse, and not by necessity, reason, or principle". It is also used to refer to a choice made without any specific criterion or restraint.
Arbitrary decisions are not necess ...
! We will break even the very thought of coming to us."
- Euromaidan Kharkiv website. February 12, 2015.
The march began near the Palace of Sports, activists lined up in a column and moved in the direction of Freedom Square. However, at about 1:20 p.m., when the column was only 100 meters away, an explosion erupted. The device, which, according to Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutor Yuriy Danylchenko, was an
anti-personnel mine
Anti-personnel mines are a form of mine designed for use against humans, as opposed to anti-tank mines, which are designed for use against vehicles. Anti-personnel mines may be classified into blast mines or fragmentation mines; the latter may ...
with a radio-controlled device, fired. According to the
Security Service of Ukraine
The Security Service of Ukraine ( uk, Служба безпеки України, translit=Sluzhba bezpeky Ukrainy}) or SBU ( uk, СБУ, link=no) is the law enforcement authority and main intelligence and security agency of the Ukrainian ...
, the explosive was hidden in a snowdrift the night before. The
TNT
Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...
equivalent of an explosion is 2 kg.
The explosion killed two (well-known Kharkiv Euromaidan activist Ihor Tolmachev and police lieutenant colonel Vadym Rybalchenko) and injured eleven people. The next day, 15-year-old Danylo Didyk, who suffered a severe brain injury and fell into a coma as a result of the explosion, died. Mykola Melnychuk, an 18-year-old student of the Kharkiv Academy of Municipal Economy, died on February 24 after an explosion.
Some fragments were taken over by a
Gazelle
A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, '' Eudorcas'' and '' Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third ...
car, which was driving near the
epicenter
The epicenter, epicentre () or epicentrum in seismology is the point on the Earth's surface directly above a hypocenter or focus, the point where an earthquake or an underground explosion originates.
Surface damage
Before the instrumental pe ...
at the time, and this significantly reduced the number of victims.
Investigation and reaction
Criminal proceedings have been instituted by the Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutor's Office over the explosion. The Security Service of Ukraine has announced the launch of an anti-terrorist operation in the city. According to the adviser to the head of the Security Service of Ukraine Markiyan Lubkivsky, 4 suspects - members of the underground terrorist group "Kharkiv Partisans" were detained, and
RPO-A Shmel
The RPO-A Shmel ( rus, реактивный пехотный огнемёт-А Шмель (РПО-А Шмель), Rocket-propelled Infantry Flamethrower-A Bumblebee) is a man-portable disposable rocket-assisted Flamethrower, It is classified as a ...
was seized from the detainees. With the help of these weapons, terrorists were preparing to commit several more terrorist acts on February 22, in particular, shelling clubs and shopping malls.
February 23 was declared a day of mourning for the dead in Kharkiv.
On January 16, 2017, Ukraine filed a lawsuit with the
International Court of Justice
The International Court of Justice (ICJ; french: Cour internationale de justice, links=no; ), sometimes known as the World Court, is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN). It settles disputes between states in accordanc ...
to bring
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
to justice for acts of terrorism and discrimination during its illegal aggression against Ukraine. Among the listed terrorist attacks was the terrorist attack during the March of Unity.
Honoring the memory of the dead
On February 24, by decree of the
President of Ukraine
The president of Ukraine ( uk, Президент України, Prezydent Ukrainy) is the head of state of Ukraine. The president represents the nation in international relations, administers the foreign political activity of the state, condu ...
, the deceased activist Ihor Tolmachov was posthumously awarded the Order "For Courage" of the third degree "for civic courage, patriotism, selfless service to the Ukrainian people".
A popular assembly in memory of the victims was held in Kharkiv on February 24.
On February 22, 2016, a memorial to the victims was unveiled near the site of the terrorist attack in Kharkiv. In 4 days, on February 27, a 21-year-old drunk man tried to knock down a monument, scatter flowers laid nearby and paint a picture of the state flag. The proceedings against him were sent to court. He pleaded not guilty in court. He was released from responsibility due to the fact that at the time of sentencing in March 2019, the three-year statute of limitations for criminal prosecution had expired. Claims for moral and material compensation were also dismissed.
Every year, assemblies honoring the victims are held by the memorial.
Trial
On April 22, 2015, the Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutor's Office approved and sent to the Frunzensky District Court of Kharkiv an indictment against three suspects in the terrorist attack - Viktor Tetyutky, Volodymyr Dvornikov and Serhiy Bashlykov.
On February 22, 2017, Kharkiv Oblast Prosecutor Yuriy Danylchenko stated that the accused and their defenders were using every opportunity to prolong the trial. He also noted that "90% of the trial is complete", about 60 court hearings have already taken place and more than 20 have been disrupted due to the defense.
As of December 5, 2018, the case was pending in the Frunzensky District Court of Kharkiv. Three people remained accused: Viktor Tetyutky, Volodymyr Dvornikov, and Serhiy Bashlykov.
On December 26, 2019, Prosecutor Volodymyr Lymar stated during a regular court hearing that the accused in the terrorist attack near the Palace of Sports are on exchange lists, and Russia is in principle demanding their exchange. An agreement on the exchange of detainees on a "one-size-fits-all" basis until December 31 was reached at the Normandy Summit on December 9, 2019, in Paris. The prosecutor filed a motion to change the measure of restraint for the accused from detention to personal commitment and at the same time requested life imprisonment for all three defendants. The lawyer of the victims of the terrorist attack, Oleg Golovkov, stated that the transfer of the accused in this case to another state "will have obvious signs of a crime against justice." From his point of view, the accused do not fall into any category suitable for exchange.
On December 28, a panel of judges at the Frunzensky District Court in Kharkiv sentenced Viktor Tetyutky, Volodymyr Dvornikov, and Serhiy Bashlykov, accused of the terrorist attack, to life in prison with confiscation of property. However, due to "exceptional circumstances" the precautionary measure for convicts was changed to "personal obligation". After the verdict was announced, the lawyer of the victims of the terrorist attack, Oleg Golovkov, told the media that he and his clients had no claims to the verdict itself, but intended to appeal the decision to extradite the convicts as "political and in no way related to the law".
Volnovakha bus attack
The Volnovakha bus attack was an attack on a highway checkpoint near the village of Buhas outside of the Volnovakha municipality in the Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine on 13 January 2015. It resulted in the deaths of 12 passengers of an intercity bus a ...